Cake baking and decorating is an art form. It requires practice to make a design look professional and pristine for a special event. Engagement cakes are similar to wedding cakes, because they are decorated to fit an occasion and the tastes of the couple. If this is the first time you have made a cake for an occasion, you may want to choose a simple decorating style. More experienced decorators can use fondant shapes and create roses or other shapes with icing. Find out how to decorate engagement cakes.

Steps

1

Sketch a plan of your decorations before you bake your cake. You will want to specify the colors and textures of the frosting as well as additional embellishments. Once you are happy with your design, buy all the ingredients for the cake, frosting and decoration ahead of time.

2

Bake your cakes. Once you choose how many tiers you would like for your engagement cake, bake them ahead of time. You will want to have the cake at room temperature before you start to frost it.

Place your cake on a base. You will want to decorate the cake in a kitchen, but move it to a location later. This will be difficult to do without a very thick cardboard or plastic base.

If you want to layer your cakes with a filling, do this now, before you start to decorate it. You may need to cut your cake horizontally, spread filling on and place the second half of the cake back on the top.

Choose butter cream frosting if you are new to cake decorating and you want excellent flavor. Butter cream frosting recipes can be found easily in cookbooks, online and in magazines. You can flavor the butter cream with extracts and color it with food coloring. For a cake that will be standing out at room temperature for a while, substitute vegetable shortening for animal fat.

3

Choose your type of frosting.

Choose whipped cream frosting if you want it to be lighter. You can also find many versions of this recipe that use whipped cream, powdered sugar and flavor extract. However, do not choose this type if your engagement cake will be sitting out for a long time, because it does not last long outside of the refrigerator.

Choose to make rolled fondant if you have some experience with cake baking and decorating. This frosting creates a smooth, even coating and is mostly used for professional cakes. However, most people find the taste bland and it can be difficult to handle.

Use ganache if you have a chocolate cake and want a glaze. This rich combination of chocolate and heavy cream creates a harder and smoother surface than butter cream, so the decorating style will be slightly different.

4

Pick your colors. The Food Network has instructions on using food coloring to achieve almost every color in the spectrum. Visit foodnetwork.com/recipes-and-cooking/frost-by-numbers-how-to-make-frosting-colors/index.html to choose the shade you want.

5

Create a frosting mask. If you are using butter cream or whipped cream, you will want to create a base layer of frosting. Once it has a layer, place it in the refrigerator to cool for 2 to 3 hours, or until it is firm.

If you are using fondant, you may also want to make a layer of butter cream frosting in a masking layer. This will help the fondant stick to the cake and it will also add to the flavor.

6

Frost the cake again. You will need to use an icing spatula to make a smooth surface, on which your decorations will be placed.

If you are using fondant, you lay the layer on top of the cake at this point. Smooth it until there are no seems. Cut off any excess fondant with a knife.

7

Stack your layers. You will want to use vertical dowels to ensure the layers are firmly attached and supported.

8

Pipe designs onto the frosting. You will need to add more butter cream or whipped cream frosting into a pastry bag, with a pastry tip and a coupling. If you want to use different colors, you will want to separate the frosting into different bags for each color you use.

You will want to pick your pastry tips ahead of time and practice on a smooth surface. You may want to make leaves, flowers, beads, lines, ruffles, writing or basket weaves with your pastry tips.

9

Use pearl dust or luster powder on fondant or ganache to make the cake shimmer. Apply the dust with a pastry brush over the surface of the cake or the decorations themselves.

10

Make shapes out of fondant or royal icing and place them in the refrigerator until you are ready to use them.

If you plan to use royal icing, place the icing inside a pastry bag and pipe it onto a piece of parchment paper in the shapes you desire. Make sure you make enough to complete your design.

If you plan to use fondant, make sheets of fondant in several different colors. Use knives and a pastry cutter to cut your shapes. You may also want to cut long horizontal pieces of fondant in different colors to wrap around your cake tiers. Place the fondant adornments aside until you are ready to use them on the cake.

11

Add your cake embellishments. There is a long list of edible and non-edible things you can use to decorate a cake. You will want to add these either before or after you pipe frosting shapes onto the cake, depending upon what will keep the frosting from being smeared.

Create a multi-colored engagement cake by using milk chocolate lentils in a design. You can order these candies in the colors you desire and then place them on the top and sides of the cake in a geometric pattern.

Print out a fancy label with the couple's name on it. Place paper in the printer that is the same color as the frosting. Stick the label to the top or side of the cake, where everyone can see.

Use faux pearls to give an elegant touch to your cake. Press them into the frosting in a straight line or in loops and swirls.

Hand-paint the engagement cake. If you are artistic, buy brushes and edible paint. Paint on top of white fondant for a beautiful contrast. If you choose to do this, you can customize your artistic cake in any way you see fit.

Wrap pre-made leis around your engagement cake tiers. You can choose these floral garlands in the engagement party or reception colors and simply lay them down around each layer of cake. If leis are not available, use fresh flowers with the stems removed for a classic look.

Wrap ribbons around your cakes. Choose 1 ribbon type or many complimentary designs. Wrap them carefully around the sides until they stick into the icing. Make sure you take extra time to put them on straight.

Use paper embellishments to decorate the cake. Visit a scrapbooking or stationary store to find metallic or brightly-colored paper leaves, vines, garlands and shapes. Use pins to affix paper that does not stay very easily.

Pre-order sugar craft flowers from websites like DecoBake.com. They can be placed on the cake just before the ceremony.